Job resources and employee engagement: a cross-national study

2015 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 610-626 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine Farndale ◽  
Inge Murrer
Keyword(s):  
Employee Engagement ◽  
Financial Services ◽  
National Level ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Job Resources ◽  
National Study ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Cross National Study ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose – In light of increasing globalization of workforces, the purpose of this paper is to explore the moderating effect of country on the relationship between job resources and employee engagement. Design/methodology/approach – Questionnaire responses from 19,260 employees of a large multinational financial services corporation in Mexico, the Netherlands, and the USA are analyzed using regression analyses and a study of effect sizes. Findings – The results show that certain job resources (financial rewards, team climate, participation in decision making) positively influence engagement in all three countries. However, the study also shows distinctions between the strength of relationships between these job resources and engagement per country which are explained through cross-cultural theorizing. Research limitations/implications – National-level variations in relationships between job resources and employee engagement are evidenced, and these can be explained to a considerable extent by applying a cross-cultural theoretical lens. Practical implications – The study highlights the importance for firms to be aware of and learn from the equivalence of constructs and their relationships across countries: although similar relationships were observed across the three countries studied here, the differences may be sufficient to require alternate approaches to appropriate job resources to engender engagement. Originality/value – Although there has been considerable empirical investigation into the relationship between job resources and engagement, little has focussed on different national settings simultaneously.

A cross-national study on restaurant attributes between Korea and China

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 167-182 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seong-Soo Cha ◽  
Cheol Park ◽  
Xiaowu Wang
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Reliability And Validity ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
National Study ◽  
Hedonic Consumption ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Functional Attributes ◽  
Cross National Study ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose IThis study aims to investigate the effects of the consumption motivations of restaurant customers on their perception of the importance of experiential and functional restaurant attributes. Design/methodology/approach A total of 330 questionnaires were issued in China (168) and Korea (162). The resulting data were analyzed using SPSS 22.0 to verify the reliability and validity of the measured variables. Structural equation modeling was used to test the hypotheses of the study. Findings The results showed that customers with hedonic consumption motivation were more sensitive to the experiential attributes than to the functional attributes of a restaurant. In addition, those customers with utilitarian consumption motivation were more influenced by functional attributes than by experiential attributes. However, these relationships differed between China and Korea. In China, the consumers’ hedonic motivation had a stronger relationship with functional restaurant attributes, which reflects a culture that emphasizes pragmatism. Originality/value This study analyzed the relationship between the motives to eat at a restaurant and the evaluation of restaurant attributes and how this differed between China and Korea, while suggesting practical implications.

Consumer involvement with corporate ads vs product ads: a cross-national study

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 322-342 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rohail Ashraf ◽  
Noel Albert ◽  
Dwight Merunka ◽  
Muhammad Asif Khan
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Emerging Market ◽  
Consumer Involvement ◽  
National Study ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Corporate Behavior ◽  
Consumer Skepticism ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Antecedents And Consequences ◽  
Cross National Study

Purpose Increasing consumer skepticism of corporate behavior has led companies to actively manage and advertise their corporate brands. However, it remains unclear how receptive consumers across different markets are to such efforts. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate differences and similarities between corporate and product advertising by examining consumer ad involvement (AI) levels (a motivational state activated by the personal relevance of stimuli) and its antecedents and consequences for these ad types across two markets with varying degrees of economic development. Design/methodology/approach Using a 2 (ad type: corporate vs product) × 2 (market type: developed vs emerging) between-subject experimental design, the study was conducted in two markets with varying degrees of economic development, specifically, the USA (n=285) and Pakistan (n=311). Findings Results show that consumer involvement with corporate ads varies for developed (USA: high) and emerging (Pakistan: low) markets but that it remains the same for product ads across markets. Developed market consumers tend to be as involved with corporate ads as they are with product ads, whereas emerging market consumers are more involved with product ads than with corporate ads. Aside from differences in involvement levels, the findings demonstrate substantial similarities in the antecedents and consequences of consumer involvement for both ad (corporate vs product) and market (developed vs emerging) types. Practical implications With advertising and communication campaigns increasingly being standardized across different markets, this study demonstrates that corporate messages do not function similar as product messages across markets. For effective corporate campaigns, ad designs should fit with the motivation levels of the target consumers across markets. Originality/value This study demonstrates the differences and similarities between corporate and product AI across a developed and an emerging market.

Transformational leadership and employee engagement in Trinidad’s service sector

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 691-715 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Tristen Balwant ◽  
Rehaana Mohammed ◽  
Riann Singh
Keyword(s):  
Transformational Leadership ◽  
Employee Engagement ◽  
Service Sector ◽  
Supervisor Support ◽  
Service Organizations ◽  
Job Resources ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Free Access ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is twofold: investigate job resources as a moderator in the relationship between transformational leadership and employee engagement in service sector organizations, and investigate the relative importance of each dimension of job resources in relation to employee engagement. Design/methodology/approach Quantitative data were collected using a survey design for which 187 employees responded. These employees were sourced from retail stores across ten shopping malls located in Trinidad. Findings Findings from a hierarchical multiple regression supported the first two hypotheses and showed that transformational leadership was positively related to employee engagement and job resources moderated the relationship between transformational leadership and employee engagement. However, findings from structural equation modeling did not support the third hypothesis because supervisor support was negatively related to employee engagement. Practical implications Implications for service organizations include the provision of adequate job resources so that the effect of transformational leadership on employee engagement can be realized. Specifically, organizations must provide job control to employees, promote free access to information, create an innovative climate and develop a supportive work climate. Instead of focusing on the job resource of supervisor support, service organizations may need to build an environment that stimulates coworker support. Originality/value This study not only adds to the limited body of research on organizational leadership in emerging markets, but also contributes to the field of organizational behavior by showing an important condition (i.e. job resources) under which the relationship between transformational leadership and employee engagement varies and unraveling the dimensions of job resources in relation to employee engagement.

Social Media as Source of Information, Stress Symptoms, and Burden Caused by Coronavirus (COVID-19)

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 373-386
Author(s):  
Julia Brailovskaia ◽  
Jürgen Margraf ◽  
Silvia Schneider
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Information Source ◽  
National Study ◽  
Stress Symptoms ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Uk ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Cross National Study ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Source Of Information

Abstract. This cross-national study investigated the extent of social media use (SMU) as a source of information about COVID-19, and its relationship with the experienced burden caused by the pandemic. Representative data from eight countries (France, Germany, Poland, Russia, Spain, Sweden, the UK, the USA) were collected online (end of May to the beginning of June 2020). Of the overall 8,302 participants, 48.1% frequently used social media (SM) as a COVID-19 information source (range: 31.8% in Germany, to 65.4% in Poland). In the overall samples and in all country-specific samples, regression analyses revealed the experienced burden caused by COVID-19 to be positively associated with SMU and stress symptoms. Furthermore, stress symptoms partly mediated the relationship between SMU and the burden. The results emphasize the significant association between the use of SM as a source of information, individual emotional state, and behavior during the pandemic, as well as the significance of conscious and accurate use of SM specifically during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Explaining corruption

2014 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 191-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yusaf H. Akbar ◽  
Vukan Vujić
Keyword(s):  
Private Sector ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
National Study ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Cultural Economic ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Corrupt Behavior ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to feature a cross-national study that investigates the relationship between national culture and corruption. Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on the so-called “Grid-Group” framework of culture. An analysis based on a sample of 55 countries is employed to estimate the relationship between corruption and cultural, economic and political variables. Cultural dimensions were developed using the World Values Survey (WVS) Wave 4 and 5. Findings – The study finds robust and statistically significant relationships. Cultures with strong hierarchy and fatalism are positively correlated with corruption whereas egalitarian cultures correlate with lower corruption. The regression model employed demonstrates robust statistical significance when all variable categories (culture, economic and political) were employed. Research limitations/implications – First, as a function of available data, future research should include more countries. Second, as with all previous culture-corruption studies to date, there is no explicit treatment of sub-cultures within a given country in this study: research on culture and corruption in large, multi-ethnic countries such as India, China or the USA where researching regional, sub-cultural differences may be important and insightful. Practical implications – Strengthening whistle-blower processes open to managers in hierarchical and fatalistic cultures will be an important tactical weapon in fighting corruption. Multinational companies who have progressively phased out expatriate managers in their subsidiaries and replaced them with local managers should invest in training for these managers designed to combat their cultural responses to corrupt behavior. Public policy must focus on institutional reform, breaking down hierarchies, promoting greater efficiency, transparency and accountability. This is a broad and far-reaching target that has to be tackled at all levels of society and across multiple stakeholders. Public policymakers should develop strategies closely with the private sector to develop anti-corruption education and training programs for both public sector and private sector managers. Originality/value – This is the first time quantitative empirical research has used the Douglas “Grid-Group” framework to estimate the role of culture in explaining corruption. From a policy and strategy perspective, the paper offers specific recommendations to governments and companies.

Does knowledge management enhance or impede innovation speed?

2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (6) ◽  
pp. 1393-1424
Author(s):  
Haili Zhang ◽  
Xiaotang Zhang ◽  
Michael Song
Keyword(s):  
Knowledge Management ◽  
Knowledge Generation ◽  
National Study ◽  
Gross Margin ◽  
Chinese Firms ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this study is to develop a theoretical model for examining how innovation speed mediates the relationship between knowledge management (KM) and performance and empirically tests the proposed model using data collected in the USA and China over three years. Design/methodology/approach To avoid common method bias and increase ability to draw causal effects of KM on performance, data were collected over three years. KM data were collected by survey; innovation speed data were collected in the following year; and sales growth and gross margin data were collected over the next three years. After merging the three data sets, the final empirical data used for this study contained data from 354 USA and 647 Chinese firms. Multiple regression analyses were used to test the research hypotheses. Sobel mediation tests were performed to test the mediating effects of innovation speed on the relationship between KM and performance. Findings Innovation speed has a U-shaped relationship with performance in both US and Chinese firms. Knowledge generation has an inverted U-shaped relationship with innovation speed in both US and Chinese firms. Knowledge dissemination increases innovation speed in US firms but not in Chinese firms. While knowledge application increases innovation speed in the US firms, it decreases innovation speed in Chinese firms. Originality/value This study is among the first to propose and empirically test the KM-innovation speed-performance relationship. This paper advances the KM literature by demonstrating that there is an inverted U-shaped relationship between knowledge generation and innovation speed and that there is a U-shaped relationship between innovation speed and performance. In addition, this study contributed to the cross-national study of KM.

Of Frames and Cultures - A Cross-Cultural Comparison of TV Newscasts

2006 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 160-173 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Senokozlieva ◽  
Oliver Fischer ◽  
Gary Bente ◽  
Nicole Krämer
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Arab World ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Cultural Comparison ◽  
Explorative Study ◽  
Cross Cultural Comparison ◽  
Tv News ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract. TV news are essentially cultural phenomena. Previous research suggests that the often-overlooked formal and implicit characteristics of newscasts may be systematically related to culture-specific characteristics. Investigating these characteristics by means of a frame-by-frame content analysis is identified as a particularly promising methodological approach. To examine the relationship between culture and selected formal characteristics of newscasts, we present an explorative study that compares material from the USA, the Arab world, and Germany. Results indicate that there are many significant differences, some of which are in line with expectations derived from cultural specifics. Specifically, we argue that the number of persons presented as well as the context in which they are presented can be interpreted as indicators of Individualism/Collectivism. The conclusions underline the validity of the chosen methodological approach, but also demonstrate the need for more comprehensive and theory-driven category schemes.

scholarly journals Meaningful Work, Job Resources, and Employee Engagement

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 4045
Author(s):  
Simon L. Albrecht ◽  
Camille R. Green ◽  
Andrew Marty
Keyword(s):  
Employee Engagement ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Meaningful Work ◽  
Organizational Outcomes ◽  
Job Resources ◽  
Psychological State ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Theoretical Frameworks ◽  
Positive Direct ◽  
The Relationship

Meaningful work and employee engagement have been the subject of increasing interest in organizational research and practice over recent years. Both constructs have been shown to influence important organizational outcomes, such as job satisfaction, wellbeing, and performance. Only a limited amount of empirical research has focused on understanding the relationship within existing theoretical frameworks. For this study, meaningful work is proposed as a critical psychological state within the job demands-resources (JD-R) model that can therefore, in part, explain the relationship between job resources and employee engagement. Survey data collected from 1415 employees working in a range of organizations, across a number of industries, were analyzed with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modelling (SEM). In support of expectations, job variety, development opportunities, and autonomy, each had a significant and positive direct association with meaningful work. These job resources also had a significant and positive indirect effect on employee engagement via meaningful work. Although job variety, development opportunities, autonomy, and feedback had significant positive direct associations with engagement, contrary to expectations, supervisor support had a negative association with engagement. The final model explained a sizable proportion of variance in both meaningful work (49%) and employee engagement (65%). Relative weights analyses showed that job variety was the strongest job resource predictor of meaningful work, and that meaningful work was more strongly associated with employee engagement than the job resources. Overall, the results show that meaningful work plays an important role in enhancing employee engagement and that providing employees with skill and task variety is important to achieving that goal. Practical implications, study limitations, and future research opportunities are discussed.

Social workers as state and citizen-agents. How social workers in a German, Dutch and Flemish public welfare organisation manage this dual responsibility in practice

2021 ◽  
pp. 146801732110097
Author(s):  
Michelle van der Tier ◽  
Koen Hermans ◽  
Marianne Potting
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Public Welfare ◽  
National Study ◽  
Front Line ◽  
Line Managers ◽  
Daily Work ◽  
Line Manager ◽  
Cross National Study ◽  
The Relationship

Summary Professional standards state that social workers in public welfare organisations should act as state and citizen-agents. However, the literature provides little insight into how social workers navigate this dual responsibility in their daily work. To address this gap, we used Maynard-Moody and Musheno’s theory on state and citizens-agent narratives to analyse street-level practices of social workers in three local welfare organisations in Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. This article explores how three specific organisational mechanisms (decision-making authority; the role of the front-line manager and the degree of specialisation) affect the ways social workers navigate both agent narratives in public welfare organisations. The data were gathered by a mixed method design of in-depth interviews and focus groups. Findings Our study shows that social workers struggle with the tensions that intrude between the state and citizen-agent narrative. We found that the extent to which both narratives are adopted by social workers is affected by a complicated interaction between the beliefs of social workers about social justice and responsiveness and the selected organisational mechanisms. Moreover, we found that critical reflection and a supportive attitude of front-line managers can help social workers to manage their double responsibility in practice. Application Our cross-national study contributes to a deeper understanding of the relationship between organisational mechanisms and the moral deliberations of social workers regarding their dual responsibility. It provides in-depth insights into the tensions and conflicts social workers in different contexts face daily on account of their dual responsibility.

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